'' is an album by
Irish Rock band
U2 , released in
1984 (see
1984 In Music ). It is the group's fourth album and their first collaboration with
Brian Eno and
Daniel Lanois . The title refers to a series of paintings made by survivors of the
Atomic Bombings Of Hiroshima And Nagasaki . The band saw the paintings at
The Peace Museum in
Chicago . The museum also had an exhibit on
Martin Luther King, Jr.
It was recorded at
Slane Castle and finished at
Windmill Lane Studios in
Dublin . Contrary to expectation, the castle depicted on the cover is not Slane but
Moydrum Castle {Link without Title} .
The album has an indistinct, atmospheric sound that emphasizes mood and ambiance over hooks and melody and explores the intricacies of
The Edge 's uniquely minimalist guitar sound. Its recording was rushed to meet the band's
Unforgettable Fire Tour schedule, giving it an unfinished feel that complements its somewhat recondite songcraft. "''The Unforgettable Fire'' was a beautifully out-of-focus record, blurred like an
Impressionist painting, very unlike a billboard or an advertising slogan." --
Bono ,
1987 {Link without Title}
Thematically, the album began the band's fascination with
America and centered around the "two kings",
Martin Luther King, Jr. and
Elvis Presley . The former was elegized with the rousing, anthemic "Pride (In the Name of Love)"--the first single from the album, which cracked the
UK Top 5 and the
U.S. Top 50--and the sparse, dreamlike "MLK". The latter is acknowledged by the murky, bumbling "Elvis Presley and America", an improvisation (based on a slowed-down backing track from "A Sort of Homecoming") that takes the album's emphasis on feeling over clarity to its furthest extreme.
The album was a success, initially on the strength of "Pride" as a single and later due to the band's attention-grabbing
Live Aid performance. In
1985 ,
Rolling Stone magazine called U2 the "Band of the 80s", saying that "for a growing number of rock-and-roll fans, U2 has become the band that matters most, maybe even the only band that matters".
''The Unforgettable Fire Collection'', released in
1985 , collects videos for some of the album's songs directed by
Meiert Avis ,
Donald Cammel and
Barry Devlin , along with a half-hour-long documentary on the recording of the album.
#"A Sort of Homecoming" – 5:28
#") – 3:48
#"Wire" – 4:19
#"
The Unforgettable Fire " – 4:55
#"
Promenade " – 2:35
#"
4th Of July " – 2:12
#"
Bad " – 6:09
#"Indian Summer Sky" – 4:17
#"Elvis Presley and America" – 6:23
#"MLK" – 2:31
#"The Unforgettable Fire" (directed by Meiert Avis)
#"Bad"
#"Pride (In the Name of Love)" (directed By Donald Cammel)
#"A Sort of Homecoming"
#''The Making of the Unforgettable Fire'' (directed by Barry Devlin)
Music by U2, words by Bono.
Produced and engineered by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois.
"Pride (In the Name of Love)" and the title track were released as singles to support the album.
In
1995 ,
Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab remastered the album and released it as a special gold CD. This edition has slightly different running times, most notably an extended (2:39) version of the instrumental "4th of July".
In
1985 , the band also released the supplementary ''
Wide Awake In America ''
EP , which offers a live performance of "Bad" along with a few collected
B-sides (previously unavailable in
North America ).
